Prospective Students
About the Graduate Program
Join our vibrant intellectual community as we build a departmental culture with a renewed commiment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Graduate teachings & research assistantships available
Dedicated mentoring from passionate faculty mentors
Departmental recognition & awards for scholar-activism
The Department of Communication’s nationally ranked graduate program is distinguished by its vibrant, prolific, nationally and internationally recognized faculty as well as a flexible but theoretically and methodologically grounded graduate curriculum that reflects our strengths within and across four areas of emphasis: Communicating Science, Health, Environment, and Risk (CommSHER); Critical/Cultural Studies; Journalism, Media and Technology; and Rhetoric. Graduate students are encouraged to take full advantage of of the range of expertise and specialization that the Department offers by designing, in consultation with their committees, programs of study that draw upon any or all of these four areas, ensuring a tailored graduate training and education experience.
Degree Programs
The Department of Communication at the University of Utah offers three graduate degrees in Communication: The master’s degree (as either master of arts or master of science); the Master of Philosophy degree; and the Doctor of Philosophy. Please see the Department of Communication Graduate Handbook for more detailed information about each degree program.
Master's Degree
The Master of Arts (MA) degree is distinguished from the Master of Science (MS) degree by virtue of language proficiency. Students who wish to earn an MA degree must be certified as possessing “standard proficiency” in a language other than English. The master’s degree is designed as a two-year program, during which time master’s students (MA or MS) must successfully complete coursework determined in consultation with and approved by their committees; master’s students may choose a thesis or nonthesis (exams or project) option to complete their degrees.
Doctor of Philosophy
The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) is designed as a four-year program during which doctoral students must successfully complete coursework as determined in consultation with and approved by their committees; qualifying exams; prospectus; and dissertation.
Master of Philosophy
The Master of Philosophy (MPhil) degree features the same requirements for admission and achievement as the Doctor of Philosophy, as described below, with the exception of the dissertation; there is no separate program for this degree.
Graduate Assistantships
The Department strives to fully fund all admitted graduate students who request funding when they apply to the graduate program, which facilitates students’ success by immersing them in the Department culture and ensuring a commensurate cohort experience. Funding is offered in the form of teaching or research assistantships: full funding includes a full tuition waiver as well as an annual stipend (extra remuneration for summer teaching is not included in that base stipend), and is offered for two years for masters’ students and four years for PhD students—commensurate with the timeline design of respective programs.
1. Statement of your personal and professional goals (approximately 800 words).
2. Academic writing sample no longer than 25 pages (i.e. term paper, thesis chapter, creative writing sample, published newspaper articles). The sample can be composed of multiple pieces, but must still be under the 25 page limit.
3. DEI/IDEA Statement: a single-page statement that briefly explains how your educational, research, teaching, and/or other experiences and interests align with the department's Anti-Racism Code of Conduct and Anti-Racism Strategic Plan. More infromation and guidance can be found here.
4. A curriculum vita or short resume.
5. Unofficial transcripts of all previous college and university coursework.
- If accepted to the program, you will need to provide official transcripts to admissions.
6. The names and email addresses of three people who will write recommendations.
- They will receive and electronic prompt to go in and upload their letters of recommendation.
OUR ADMISSIONS CYCLE FOR FALL 2024 HAS CLOSED.
Our next admission cycle is for Fall 2025 and that application will be due by December 1, 2024. We do not admit students in Spring or Summer.
1. Complete the online application here: FALL 2025 APPLICATION LINK WILL BE AVAILABLE IN JULY
2. Submit payment for the application fee (fee is $55.00 for domestic students, $65.00 for international students). Applications will not be considered complete until the payment is processed.
In addition to the Application, materials and fee, International Students are also required to verify your English proficiency.
1. TOEFL, IELTS, Duolingo, ACT or SAT scores must be submitted to the Office of Admissions by November 15th.
- TOEFL - 80 or higher. Scores can be sent using institutional code: 4853
- Duolingo - 105 or higher. Scores can be sent by logging into your duolingo account, select the "Send Results" button next to your test results, and select the University of Utah as the receiving institution.
- IELTS - 6.5 or higher. Please contact your testing center to have the score sent directly to the University of Utah.
- ACT English Score of 18 or higher (4274)
- SAT Reading Score of 27 or higher (4853)
- More information about the Graduate English Language Proficiency requirements through University of Utah can be found here.
2. You can contact the International Office of Admissions at iao@sa.utah.edu or visit their website if you have further questions regarding submission of your scores.
1-20 Information
1. The University of Utah begins processing I-20 Certificates of Eligibility for students after they have been admitted.
- Please refer to the admissions site located here for the I-20 requirements.
Here is a recommended timeline that can assist you in assembling and submitting materials by the specified deadlines.
Early August: Application opens
Late August/ Early September
- Start gathering your materials.
- Speak to the people who are going to be writing your letters of recommendation.
- Especially if they are professors, the end of the semester is a busy time and you want to make sure they are prepared.
Early November
- TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingos scores are due to the Office of Admissions
December 1
- Application and all materials due. Any application without all materials, recommendations, and fees completed will be considered incomplete.
The Graduate Committee generally convenes in late January to review applications and make admissions decisions. Applicants can expect to be notified of their status in early-mid February.